Bella Epoque
by UberKawaiiUlquiPencil
Summary: Orihime is with Ichigo, a jealous, abusive man. Ulquiorra is in love with Orihime and refuse to watch her suffer. He must decide--keep his love or set her free?


Do you feel like a man, Ichigo Kurosaki? Do you feel better every time you pull her back and smother her screams? Is it the only way to control what you're swiftly becoming? Are you any better than those who you fight? You're trash, filthy fucking trash Ichigo Kurosaki and one day she will rise from the ashes, a totally new and better person. Just you watch, trash...

There she was again, beautiful even with that bruise. She kept saying it happened at the park when some child kicked a ball at her face but I'm not that dim and neither is anyone else. I looked down at the 'best friends' bracelet she made me and looked up to see her in my face, smiling like a plastic toy doll.

"You are a horrible liar, Inoue-chan." I spoke. That fake smile washed away like the rain swallowed it whole.

"I can't tell anyone besides you." She said, choking back those tears.

"You can ask me to make it stop." Orihime looked up me, tears tainting the air.

"you can't! Please, Ulquiorra, he's all I have." Anger flared up.

"You know I'm here. Am I nothing to you?" I said as calm as I could manage.

"No, Ulquiorra. You're my best friend...You're always there but there's something special about Kurosaki-kun." She said.

"What? That he packs quite the punch and he swears up one way and down the other that he loves you when the honest truth is that he doesn't. No man who puts his hands on you in a violent manner loves you." I said.

"He's just trying to protect me." She said, god this woman is thick skulled.

"He wants to kill you himself!" She froze, her eyes widening, her backing up slowly until she was against the wall opposite to me and she sank down, covering her face to cry. I squatted down in front of her and she pushed me back.

"Why are you lying to me?! Why?! I thought we were friends!" she sobbed hysterically, people moving around us like a river diverging around two boulders.

"I have never lied to you the entire time I have known you Orihime. You know you can do better and you know you have me. I will be here even when you scream at me to leave." I said, speaking straight from the depths of a heart I did not know I had.

"Ulquiorra, I lo-" right in the middle of the thing I needed to hear, Kurosaki strolled over.

"What are you two doing?" he said, looking down with that monster playing behind his eyes.

"I'm just speaking with Inoue-san, might we have one moment more?" I hated being so formal with this piece of garbage but if I was not, she would be beaten more.

"No, we have somewhere to go. Get up, Orihime." He yanked her arm and she yelped, being forced to stand. I grabbed his hand.

"You may not want to do that. Inoue-San bruises easily."

"Yeah, yeah. Come on before we're late." Ichigo dismissed me like I was a friend of his. I waited until they could not see me and I followed them all the way to the playground where Orihime and I met. I remember on the swings. I remember finding that thing called a heart. I remember and refuse to let someone abuse my heart. I stood behind a tree wide enough to conceal me and I listened in.

"Why do I always find you with him?" Ichigo said. I could hear the creaking of the rusty chain of the swing.

"He's a really good friend of mine." Orihime said.

"Friends don't always stay friends. You're mine, whether he likes it or not." Ichigo said. I wanted to kill him.

"I like being yours." She was lying. I knew it.

"Say you love me."

"I love you Kurosaki-kun." I heard the smack and then an awful silence. My nails were tearing the tree's back out of sheer anger. It was rage like nothing I had ever felt. I stepped out from behind the tree and Ichigo glared at me, Orihime sitting on the swing, covering her cheek. I saw _it_ in his eyes.

"Care to explain why you struck Inoue-San?" I was going to lose my mind if this happened again.

"I didn't. Now go away, I'm trying to talk to her."

"Inoue-san and I have a school project to work on." I lied, taking her by the hand from the swing. Ichigo put his hand on my back and I turned around and kicked him full strength in the stomach, scooping Orihime up after that.

"K-Kurosaki-kun!!" she sobbed. I ran full speed with her in my arms and jumped through the window of my apartment. Grimmjow wouldn't be home until much later which gave me time. She screamed and cried and slammed her fist on my chest.

"Why?!"

"He hit you and don't say he didn't, I was watching the entire time. It needs to stop." I said.

"He loves me though!"

I bit my lip before screaming out "Orihime Inoue, I love you! Not him, he doesn't love you anywhere close to how much I love you…please, stop hurting me and get away from him." I begged. If I possessed the ability to cry, I'd probably be crying as hard as she was.

"Ulquiorra...oh my god..." she couldn't speak. Now, I was hurting worse, I knew she didn't love me anywhere close to how she loved Kurosaki and I was nothing in her eyes compared to him. "I love you too but not how I love what Kurosaki-kun was. I love you as my best friend, my brother but I love who Kurosaki was more than I thought I could."

"Then do me a favor? For your brother?" She nodded.

"Sleep well."

"What?" I knocked her out, laying her down gently. I hoped to God she wouldn't remember when she woke. I took her home and headed to Kurosaki's. He was sitting outside at the park where we left, rubbing his stomach.

"Fucker!" he screamed as he saw me. "Where did you take her?" He coughed, staggering towards me.

"Somewhere where trash like you cannot hurt her." I said.

"I never, ever fucking liked you. I'm going to kill you." He said. Before he had the time to summon his Hollow mask, I punched a hole in his clavicle and drew my hand out slowly.

"You will never hurt her again." I said as his eyes closed forever. Orihime was standing behind me...she must have followed me. After all the times she was knocked out by Kurosaki, she must come out quick.

"Kurosaki!" she screamed running towards him but I grabbed her.

"He's dead! He can't hurt you ever again!" I spun her around to look at me.

"You killed him! Let me go! Help me someone! Let me go! I hate you!" she screamed and I let her go, my entire body drowning in her words. She ran away and I returned to Hueco Mundo and that was the last time I ever saw my love. Ever.


End file.
